What if you wanted to have a tree house, but there was no tree around you that could accommodate one? Well, if you can hire creative designers and architects, you can get them to think of things like a “tree-free hut.” That’s exactly what a London family did, and the creative people who got it created something called Penfold, a wooden structure that seems strictly for children to explore and let their imagination run wild. Oh, and since this is not attached to a real tree, it can eventually be moved to another location if the owners decide to move.
Designer: De Matos Ryan
The goal of the project was to create a tree house even though his home did not have a tree that could hold one. What they invented is something that looks like a pyramid made of wood that children can use as a neighborhood lookout and explore in various imaginative scenarios they can think of inside their treeless tree house. The structure is called Penfold, in honor of a character from his favorite cartoon, Danger Mouse.
Although there are no trees in the structure, they are, of course, made of tree materials. The tree house is built of Douglas fir in a series of triangular frames. Inside there are two levels connected by a wooden staircase and rope. Inside there are several triangular windows at different heights, so they can serve as viewpoints and, at the same time, provide ventilation inside the structure. Children can let their imaginations run wild as they climb and watch and create all kinds of games inside their tree house.
Penfold also has an open skylight at the top as the main light source. At night, there is external grade LED tube lighting on the inner walls so that children can still use it. The skylight also has sensors so that it closes automatically when it rains. The exterior has a stainless steel cable lattice so they can later put some climbing plants on it, giving the structure even more tree-like features and “ultimately, creating the feeling of the tree never going to be”.
The treeless tree house has a modular design so it can be “replanted” elsewhere in case the family decides to move elsewhere. Oh, and it has a “kid-only” vibe, as the only way to get in is through a low crawl space at the bottom. Sorry, you’re going to have to build your own tree house.